Convergence to equilibrium for linear parabolic systems coupled by matrix-valued potentials

Abstract

We consider systems of parabolic linear equations, subject to Neumann boundary conditions on bounded domains in $\mathbb{R}^d$, that are coupled by a matrix-valued potential $V$, and investigate under which conditions each solution to such a system converges to an equilibrium as $t \to \infty$. While this is clearly a fundamental question about systems of parabolic equations, it has been studied, up to now, only under certain positivity assumptions on the potential $V$. Without positivity, Perron-Frobenius theory cannot be applied and the problem is seemingly wide open. In the present article, we address this problem for all potentials that are $\ell^p$-dissipative for some $p \in [1,\infty]$. While the case $p=2$ can be treated by classical Hilbert space methods, the matter becomes more delicate for $p \not= 2$. We solve this problem by employing recent spectral theoretic results that are closely tied to the geometric structure of $L^p$-spaces.